E-mail, Feeds, 'n' Stuff

Monday, December 31, 2012

10... 9... 8... 7...

As the year ends, so too does the reign of terror of the Sam Rand Twins, who have done more to wreck Portland than anyone we can remember. As we bid them adios, we worry about what the new faces on the City Council will bring. Char-Lie Hales and Steve Novick promise to be every bit as daft, and probably almost as mean, as their departing predecessors. The nickel-and-diming of the average Joe is almost certainly going to get worse, and the looting of the city treasury and trashing of neighborhood livability by the developer weasels will no doubt continue unabated.

One agenda item for us to work on is a nickname for Novick. Anything having to do with his physical appearance is out, which takes a lot of fitting sobriquets off the table. The nicknaming process will be delicate, but we bet he'll outrage us all by Valentine's Day, and something will pop up.

Meanwhile, we're looking forward to seeing how the guys at WW handle Char-Lie. Last time around they helped push Creepy Adams into office, then immediately pulled the rug out from under him with stuff that they probably had before the election. We doubt they'll do the same with Hales, but if anybody can figure out what their agenda is over there, that somebody is smarter than we are.

And of course, the countdown for Sam Adams's make-work job at the Portland State University Patronage Center continues.

Steve Novick? Mean and arrogant? I've always enjoyed talking to him on Mt. Tabor. I think he's a gentle soul who has good intentions. Remember when Mitt Romney came to town and Steve was out there protesting the dog on the car roof? Anyone willing to put himself out there like that has got to be a true believer.

Much later in the campaign, I pointed out to Steve that the dog-on-the-roof thing wasn't the right take anymore - especially after someone noticed that President Obama's book had a reference to eating dog meat as a youngster.

Steve would be walking around the loop on top of Mt. Tabor one way and I'd be coming around the other so each pass I'd tell him another one of my Mitt Romney jokes. All mine went with the money take for the whole election. Two words...Cayman Islands.

Bill McDonald recounts an importing point about Mr Novick, that he comes across as a True Believer...
One should always be wary of people who are True Believers of any stripe for little good ever comes from their actions.

Out of curiousity I checked Novick's campaign web site. He says, "Interestingly, among the nation’s big states, high-tax New York and California, for example, continue to have higher per capita incomes than low-tax Texas." Good luck. This guy is going to tax you into prosperity. And like all the very many smart and sanctimonious Democrats and Harvard lawyers he's apparently never heard of a balance sheet. That makes everything, oh so much easier.

Sammyboy is still trying to rule the roost after his departure. He has been asking some of his cronies to sit on the newly formed NW Transportation Management Association (TMA) that will oversee the soon to be pay for on-street parking in NW Portland. The group will also oversee spending some of the revenue generated. At least one car hater crony has accepted. Look for the money to be spent NOT to benefit the drivers who now must pay excessive fees to park their cars on the streets they already pay for by the way of the gas tax; but for more bicycle infrastructure taking up more sparking spaces for freeloading bicyclists, and for more streetcar service where passengers don’t even come close to paying for the cost of their ride.

"One should always be wary of people who are True Believers of any stripe for little good ever comes from their actions."

True, that.

Bill McDonald: Gentle soul with good intentions? He always struck me as a firebrand, and one of the "smartest guy in the room" types. Are there any gentle souls with good intentions in politics? Surely there cannot be many. Does your "good intentions" equate with tankfixer's "true believer?"

Newleaf: we'll probably end up with taxes as high as California and per-capita income rivaling Mississippi.

Maybe you could wait a little while to give ol Steve a nickname. The coveted (or not so coveted) nickname is sometimes earned after a little time, and mostly applicable to the individual's current post. It could even be a positive characterization, as Bill so politely suggests. I have a feeling the nickname for Mr. Novick will be revealed to all after a very short time in office, and not a whole lot of thought will have gone into it.

Sally,
Are you using the "smartest guys in the room" reference to describe Novick as an Enron-style con artist? That's where the phrase came from originally.

If you're just trying to say he's very intelligent, well, that's true.

But I do sense there is a genuine desire to work for the common good in him - and yes, that is a rare trait in politics. It's like Ralph Nader. You can hate everything he stands for, but there's a genuine desire to help humanity with the guy.

Steve might not have met a tax or fee he didn't like, but I'm just contrasting him with the all-too-common narcissistic sociopath type that swarms over politics and causes so much trouble.

Steve's work on the Love Canal case was stellar. He reminds me of Ralph Nader a little in that they are both activists. Activists are usually true believers in something bigger than themselves; compared to some of our outgoing politicians who were essentially walking egos in suits.

I've mostly found the "smartest guys in the room" to have the lowest "common sense". Sometimes they miss the social aspect of a situation. Or they can't fix a leaking toilet. Or they can't relate one smartness to another.

Generally I'll take a common sense person over a smarty, especially after comparing a few Harvard friends to people who have grown up on a farm or built a shed.

Whenever the first thing I hear about a politician is how "smart" he is, my defenses go up. Case in point: Jefferson Smith is very, very "smart." He just has the people skills of a wet dishrag.

My suspicion about Novick is that he's the same way. He certainly has not lived a "normal" life. And he does not seem to listen to people, at all. He has all the answers, all the time. It doesn't bode well.

Yes, he's smart/funny. He's clever. He may well be the smartest guy in the room (and Bill, I did not know that that phrase emanated from Enron; thanks).

But activists who are "true believers" in "something bigger than themselves," but don't listen, and have all the answers, as Jack says -- I guess I'm never that trusting. And that does seem to be the politics du jour. That would get all my hackles and hairs up every time.

Road Work

Miles run year to date: 155
At this date last year: 241
Total run in 2015: 271
In 2014: 401
In 2013: 257
In 2012: 129
In 2011: 113
In 2010: 125
In 2009: 67
In 2008: 28
In 2007: 113
In 2006: 100
In 2005: 149
In 2004: 204
In 2003: 269